FLOWERS by ingrid and titti - Lovely Herbs

Titti and I are back, after a summer break, with another FLOWERS. This time it's all about herbs and other related things.

Herbs are such a pleasure to work with, to grow in the garden, to add to your cooking and to drink as herbal teas. 

Lavender is both lovely to grow as a plant in the garden but can also be added to both sweet and savory recipes. It can also be used dried in little sachets to scent your cupboards.  

We might not think of hops as a herb but it's used for making beer. I grow it in my garden, not for making beer, but for it being a great and very fast climber. 

My favourite is one called Humulus lupulus 'Aureus', I love saying that name, it kind of rolls off the tongue. It's also called Golden Hops - because of the colour of the leaves. Every season it grows several meters. so you need to give it lots of space. You cut it down every autumn and it then starts growing again in the spring. 

Dried flowers stems can be used for decorating, both as swags and for table decorations.

Here I have used the fresh stems and leaves as table decorations. They will wilt after a couple of hours depending how hot it is. I couldn't resist them - they are so pretty with lots of colour and texture. 

These stems doesn't have any flowers yet - they will come later. 

Vitis vinifera or grape vine is the plant that gives us wine - here represented by a bottle of wine and a small glass. 

There are a few vines that are very nice garden plants - Vitis vinifera 'Purpurea' and Vitis coignetiae - both vigorous climbers with colourful leaves in the autumn and both produce grapes - but unfortunately not very palatable.

The pattern on the three vintage dinner plates is called 'Vinranka', which is Swedish for 'grapevine'. The pattern was designed by Arthur Percy, a Swedish designer. It depicts grapevine leaves in different sizes as well as grapes and was first shown in 1955. 

A few books about herbs is always handy - finding out how to grow them as well as other interesting facts. I know nowadays you can find all that on the internet - I just happen to be a big book lover. There is just something special about holding a book and flipping through the pages - reading the text and looking at beautiful photographs.

Growing culinary herbs is easy and gives a lot of pleasure - especially like here lavender temporarily in a zinc container. But as soon as I'm done with using them as props I'm going to plant them out in the garden and they will give me enjoyment for years to come.

Titti Malmberg - my Swedish based collaborator - who I work alongside on FLOWERS - also has a new post on her blog HWIT BLOGG - so please follow the link and go over and see what she has created.

Enjoy your flower arranging and have a fabulous and floral Friday and a great weekend!

Thank you for visiting 'Of Spring and Summer' - I will be back on Sunday with another Florets - a floral quote by someone passionate about flowers.

~ xoxo ~ 

Ingrid

[Styling, text and photography © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.]

P. S. Did you know that you can subscribe to receive a notification via email whenever I have a new blog post. Just fill in your email address at the top of my blog on the right.

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FLOWERS by ingrid and titti - Happy Midsummer!

It's midsummer and Titti and I would like to wish you all a Happy Midsummer!

I have put together a summer bouquet especially for today. It's full of frothy bright green Alchemilla mollis, dark coloured Astrantia and Aquilegia and some small bright pink Gladiolus italicus.

It's always something special about summer flowers. All of these are grown in Britain and again most of them are from Forever Green Flower Company.

Simply a perfect and lovely bunch to celebrate midsummer with.

Titti Malmberg - my Swedish based collaborator - who I work alongside on FLOWERS - also has a new post on her blog HWIT BLOGG - so please follow the link and go over and see what she has created.

Titti and I are taking a break over the summer and we will be back with more FLOWERS in August. 

Have a Very Happy Midsummer!

I'll see you next week with more floral delights from 'Of Spring and summer'. 

~ xoxo ~ 

Ingrid

P. S. Did you know that you can subscribe to receive a notification via email whenever I have a new blog post. Just fill in your email address at the top of my blog on the right.

For more floral inspiration you can follow me on:

Pinterest:   https://www.pinterest.com/ofspringsummer/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ofspringandsummer/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ingrid.henningsson

FLOWERS by ingrid and titti - It's Time for Flowers!

Here is another FLOWERS from Titti Malmberg and and the theme is 'It's Time for Flowers'. Well as far as I'm concerned it's always the right time for flowers. But spring is a particularly special time of year with an explosion of stunning flowers.

I'm featuring another variation of gorgeously scented stock and sweet peas. This time in beautiful pink colours.

The stems of the flowers were very long and like made for a large and generous arrangement. So this time I used an oversized vintage pickling jar and positioned each stem at a diagonal in the container. The flower went to one side leaning on the edge of the vase and the bottom of the stem to the other side at the bottom of the jar.

I started with the more sturdy stock flowers arranging them around the edge of the container followed by the sweet peas. It's quite easy to feed the narrow sweet pea stems through the stock flowers. You need to be a little bit careful as the stems are delicate and the flowers are fragile and just space them evenly throughout the arrangement. 

As always a few little props - this time a small vase in a matching colour and some books about the very interesting fashion designer Issey Miyake.

In the background is a bright pink watering can - I might add that is has never been used in the garden! I wonder why? Maybe because it would not look nice for very long.

Don't hesitate to use the same flowers over and over again. With a little bit of creating thinking and some variation in colour and size as well as using different vases and containers - you can make the arrangements look quite different. Also think about adding some interesting props that either matches or contrasts the flowers. 

If you go over to Titti's blog you can see her interpretation of this week's theme. Here is the link to her blog. 

Enjoy your flower arranging and have a lovely floral day!

Titti and I will be back in June with some more FLOWERS with new and interesting themes.

Did you know that you can subscribe to receive a notification via email whenever I have a new blog post. Just fill in your email address at the top of my blog on the right.

You can also follow me on:

Pinterest:   https://www.pinterest.com/ofspringsummer/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ofspringandsummer/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ingrid.henningsson

FLOWERS by ingrid and titti - Bouquet to Give Away

On FLOWERS this week Titti and I are featuring floral bouquets to giveaway for a special occasion. I wanted to spend a bit more time and effort on it and make it look just that little bit extra special. 

My intentions were good - BUT it didn't work out as planned.

So what happened? Well, I went to buy flowers from my trusted local flower seller, a few streets from where I live, and he wasn't there! I thought, what do I do now? The florist is a nice choice but often too expensive, so my option was one of the many supermarkets. So off I went to Tesco and bought two bunches of mixed flowers - a mix of white roses, multiculoured carnations, some dark chrysanthemums, white phlox and white lilies. 
     

I made a hand-tied bunch, used raffia to tie around the stems and then cut all the stems the same length. 

I then used some of Jane Means' pretty ribbons to hide the raffia. I used two different grey ribbons - a light silver grey and a dark grey together, made a big bow, left the ends quite long and finished off by cutting the ends of the ribbons at an angle.

There are many different ways of wrapping your flowers - I quite like to use plain brown wrapping paper. Florists often use several layers of both cellophane and tissue paper.

I simply wrapped the flowers in one layer of brown paper and finished off with a piece of dark grey ribbon.

While assembling the bouquet I left the phlox sticking up above the other flowers like little bits of froth. I also positioned the two lilies at the back - with lots of unopened buds they are going to need lots of room when the flowers open up.

This is a bouquet that will last for a while - which will be nice for the person you give it to. The roses will last for a little while, the carnations and the chrysanthemums will last longer and the phlox and the lilies will last the longest and what is nice is that they still have lots of buds that will open up and keep the bouquet going for up to two weeks.

Enjoy your flower arranging and have a fabulous floral Saturday!

Titti over on HWIT BLOGG has also created her version of 'Bouquet to Give Away'. So head over to her blog and see her interpretation. 

I will be back tomorrow with another floral quote by a flower lover.

Ingrid

~ xoxo ~

[All ribbons are from Jane Means Ribbon Collection.]

For more floral inspiration follow me on:

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FLOWERS by ingrid and titti - Tulip Day!

I've been doing tulips all week because of Tulip Week in Sweden and today on FLOWERS Titti and I are celebrating Tulip Day. 

I'm showing three very simple and slightly different ways of arranging the same bunch of tulips in two vintage pickling jars.

In the first one I have simply taken ten tulips of the same colour and I'm leaning them to one side of the large glass jar. 

You can do this with any bunch of flowers - it's a little bit of a more relaxed and contemporary way of displaying flowers.

In the next one I have added another ten tulips - still of the same colour and I have packed them quite tightly into the pickling jar. I have left the ones in the middle slightly longer and the ones around the edges slightly shorter.

I have also on purpose not made the flowers into a hand-tied bunch. Instead the stems are a bit unruly in the bottom of the vase also giving it a more relaxed look.

This is a good way to arrange tulips if you don't like the "wild" look - as the container keeps the flowers contained - even as they grow. 

In the last arrangement I have added a whole lot of Ranunculus in almost the same colour as the tulips. I first removed all the leaves so I only had the long stems to feed down among the tulips. 

They are spread evenly throughout the tulips giving the bouquet a softer look with the rounder, frillier and multi-layered  Ranunculus flowers.

In this the last arrangement I have used a jar with a slightly wider and more squat shape and instead of clear glass this jar has a slightly green tinge to the glass picking up the colour of the leaves and stems.

With the addition of a piece of fabric, that can be used as a tablecloth, that picks up the colour of the flowers and a little mini vase the arrangements are ready to be placed on any little table, sideboard or mantelpiece around your home.

My Swedish collaborator Titti Malmberg over on HWIT BLOGG is also celebrating Tulip Day - so go over and have a look at her interpretation.

Have a fabulous floral Friday and I will see you tomorrow again for Day 6 of Tulip Week. I'll be featuring a little bit about styling and decorating with tulips.

Ingrid

~ xoxo ~ 

[Styling and Photography © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.]

You can also find me on:

Pinterest:   https://www.pinterest.com/ofspringsummer/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ofspringandsummer/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ingrid.henningsson

FLOWERS by ingrid and titti - Happy New Year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

GOTT NYTT ÅR!

Ingrid

~ xoxo ~ 

I would like to wish everybody a very happy, inspiring and creative 2016! 

I would also like to thank all my readers who has visited my blog and made lovely comments.

Titti over on HWIT BLOGG is also wishing you a Happy New Year!

[Styling and Photography: © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.

You can also find me on:

Pinterest:   https://www.pinterest.com/ofspringsummer/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ofspringandsummer/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ingrid.henningsson

FLOWERS by ingrid and titti - Happy Christmas!

I would like to wish everybody a very Happy Holidays!

SEASON'S GREETINGS!

GOD JUL!

HAPPY CHRISTMAS!

Have a Happy and Floral Christmas!

Titti over on HWIT BLOGG is also wishing you a Happy Christmas and God Jul.

Ingrid

~ XOXO ~

[Styling and Photography: © Ingrid Henningsson II Of Spring and Summer.

You can also find me on:

Pinterest:   https://www.pinterest.com/ofspringsummer/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ofspringandsummer/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ingrid.henningsson

FLOWERS by ingrid and titti - Flowers and Candles

The theme for FLOWERS this week is 'Flowers and Candles' - very appropriate for this time of year and it being so close to Christmas.

Christmas can come in many different colours - here are some inspirational images using quite colourful flowers and fabrics - mixing new with vintage and some subtle hints of Christmas! 

This first pink arrangement has a mix of tulips, hyacinths and Ranunculus in a metal container.

For each image I have included - some flowers or foliage in vase or container, a contemporary patterned fabric and a candle holder that is either a candle stick or a tealight holder. This very simple arrangement consists of grey-green Eucalyptus foliage in a white Bertil Vallien Kosta Boda vase.

I have of course also included some small Christmas decorations - such as a couple of different wreaths in the background, some vintage golden Christmas tree baubles, as well as some new silver mini baubles.

Even this black and white fabric has snowflakes on it! 

The flowers are some dark pink Anemones in a matching pink glass vase. I have used this arrangement in a previous post - but here added the pink tea-light and vintage baubles.

This last arrangement has some Hyacinths on their own in a vintage zinc coffee pot.

I hope you have enjoyed my little bit of a different or alternative way of decorating for Christmas. There really is no wrong way of doing it - it's whatever takes your fancy and whatever makes you happy that is the most important!

Please, go over to Titti's blog and take a look at how she has interpreted the theme this week. Here is the link to her blog HWIT BLOGG.

I will be back on Sunday with another Florets - floral quotes by flower lovers.

Enjoy your flower arranging and have a great floral day!

~ xoxo ~

Ingrid

[Styling and Photography: © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.]

You can also find me on:

Instagram - https://instagram.com/ofspringandsummer/

Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/ofspringsummer/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ingrid.henningsson

FLOWERS by ingrid and titti - Moody Hues

Well, the theme for this weeks FLOWERS is 'Moody Hues' and when looking around in magazines and on the internet - dark and moody colours - are pretty much everywhere today.

You'll find the darker colours being used in flower arrangements - especially now during the late autumn and winter season. 

I have created a whole board on Pinterest that is called 'Moody Flowers' with over fifty different flower arrangement using flowers in darker colours. Here is the link.

Paint companies like Farrow and Ball have developed darker more dramatic tones in the last few years. Colours such as Railings, Mole's Breath and Down Pipe are some of their darker and moody colours.

Stylists like Hans Blomquist often works with darker colours and in his book In Detail he shows lots of different ways of using dark colours in interesting ways.

In the first arrangements I have simply used very, dark Dahlias in two different red colours and set them against lots of black props.

In the second arrangement I'm using deep dark almost black Dahlias and as a contrast I have used long Eucalyptus branches with grey-green foliage . 

In the last arrangement I picked a double tulip in an interesting colour combination called Tulipa 'Orange Princess'. The flowers looked even moodier  paired with more orange and brown colours.

Please, go over to Titti's blog and take a look at how she has interpreted the theme this week. Here is the link to her blog HWIT BLOGG

Enjoy your flower arranging and have a great floral day!

I will be back on Sunday with another Florets - floral quotes by flower lovers.

~ xoxo ~

Ingrid

[Styling and Photography: © Ingrid Henningsson/Of Spring and Summer.]

You can also find me on:

Instagram - https://instagram.com/ofspringandsummer/

Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/ofspringsummer/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ingrid.henningsson